


giving back

by onlyeverthus



Category: Tangled (2010)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-13
Updated: 2014-04-13
Packaged: 2018-01-19 04:30:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1455433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onlyeverthus/pseuds/onlyeverthus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A short while after they get married, Rapunzel decides she wants to make a visit to the orphanage where Eugene grew up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	giving back

**Author's Note:**

> A birthday present for my beloved Angie, who wanted "something where after their wedding Eugene and Rapunzel go back to the orphanage where Eugene grew up, to take the kids there books and cupcakes and stuff". Happy birthday, bb, I love you, and I hope you like this!

Eugene laughs when Rapunzel flops down next to him on the bed, smiling and wrapping his arm around her shoulders as she curls against his side.

"Hey, Blondie," he murmurs, lifting his hand to her hair as he kisses the side of her head.

"Hey," she replies, reaching across his lap for his other hand and running her thumb over his wedding ring.

Even though it's been a few months now, it still feels strange and surreal, but in the best way. In all of his years spent as Flynn Rider, he never imagined himself actually falling in love with someone, and the idea of _marrying_ someone would have been even further from his mind.

But of course, Rapunzel is not just any someone. She's the _only_ someone.

"What's up?" he asks. "You seem like you've been thinking."

"Yeah, I was just –" She breaks off, and he can see the crease in her brow when he looks down at her.

Finally she looks up at him, still frowning. "Do you remember where your orphanage is? The one you grew up in?"

"Yeah," he says slowly, feeling an odd twisting in his stomach. "Why?"

"I've just been thinking, like... we have so many _things_ here. Clothes, books – why not give some of it to some people who could really use it?"

"The kids at the orphanage," Eugene says quietly.

"Do – do you think it's a bad idea?"

"No, I think it's a great idea. God knows we could've used stuff like that when I was there." He gives a short laugh. "I just never thought I'd go back."

"You don't have to –"

"No," he says quickly. "I want to. Let the boys see that they really can accomplish something once they leave."

"They can't all marry princesses, Eugene," Rapunzel teases.

"Well, no, not everyone can be so lucky."

Rapunzel giggles, and Eugene grins as he dips his head for a kiss.

 

 

The next day, Rapunzel runs the idea by her parents, who also agree that it's a great idea, and by the following morning, the entire kingdom is involved. Soon, donations of books, clothes, and toys are coming in at a steady pace, and Rapunzel claps her hands delightedly at the end of the day when she sees all the new things.

"Oh, look, Eugene!" she says, pulling a medium sized box from one of the large crates. "Seeds! Flowers and vegetables. The kids can have a garden, won't that be great?"

Eugene nods, smiling as she flips through the little packets of seeds. While he really does think it's a great idea, and loves seeing Rapunzel so happy, there's that little part of him that can't help but be jealous. He just wishes he could've had even a fraction of this stuff when he was in the orphanage; maybe his life would've gone a different route.

_But would you have Rapunzel now?_ his mind asks him, and he has to concede that no, probably not. He wouldn't have been a thief, and wouldn't have come across her tower and hidden inside; he wouldn't have met her and changed his life forever.

"I just wish you could've had this stuff."

Eugene looks over at her, his eyes wide, thinking for one wild moment that she somehow read his mind, and she frowns as she looks back at him.

"What?"

"Nothing, I just –" He shakes his head, and then confesses, "I was thinking the same thing. Seeing all of this stuff, I can't help thinking about how much better things could've been if we'd had it when I was there."

Rapunzel almost seems to wilt, her teeth pressing into her bottom lip, and Eugene shakes his head again as he shifts closer to her.

"It's okay. I'm glad we're doing this, I really am. And besides." He lifts his hand to her face, smiling as he sweeps his thumb over her cheek. "I have everything I need now."

A slow smile curves her lips, and she leans into him, her arms circling his middle as she presses against his chest. He hugs her tightly, hiding his face in the curve of her neck, and feels a strong swelling of love for her, and gratitude for the life he has.

 

 

The night before they're due to take all of the donations to the orphanage, Eugene finds Rapunzel in the kitchen. There are platters of cupcakes, some frosted, some not, on the island in the middle of the stone floor, and he frowns bemusedly as he steps inside.

"Blondie?"

"Hey!" she says brightly. There's flour on her nose and cheeks, and some in her hair, and he smiles broadly as he moves closer to her.

"What're you doing?"

"I wanted to make cupcakes to take tomorrow."

Eugene laughs. "How many do you have?"

Rapunzel shrugs, and then grins. "Enough. I'm done baking; now I'm just frosting."

"Why didn't you have the cooks do this for you?"

"They've already done plenty. They made a bunch of sandwiches, plus other picnic food; they had to have extra ice delivered to make sure none of it went bad. They offered to help me with this, but I told them I could do it myself." She raises her eyebrows. "If you want to help me, I'll finish faster."

Eugene smiles and nods as he comes to stand next to her, accepting the butter knife she passes him and reaching for a cupcake.

"So you're still okay with going tomorrow?"

"Yep," he says without hesitation, peering intently at the cupcake he's now covering in yellow frosting. "I'm fine, Rapunzel, I promise."

"I just don't want to feel like I'm forcing you into something you're not comfortable with."

"I won't lie, it's probably going to be a little weird at first, but I think it'll be okay."

"Okay," Rapunzel says, and she's smiling when he looks over at her. He dips his head for a quick kiss, and they return to the task at hand.

Eventually all of the cupcakes are done, and Eugene blows out a breath.

"Well, I think it's safe to say that there won't be any fighting for cupcakes," he says, arching an eyebrow as he stares around.

Rapunzel giggles, and he grins as he looks over at her, and then starts to laugh.

"You've got frosting on your nose."

"Oops," she says, crossing her eyes in an attempt to see it.

She suddenly looks completely irresistible, and Eugene bends his head to kiss her nose, flicking his tongue over the end to get the smear of frosting. She's smiling when he pulls back, and he leans in again to kiss her lips, sliding his arm around her waist and pulling her against him.

"Do cupcakes put you in the mood?" she asks breathlessly when the kiss breaks, her hand resting on his chest, clutching his shirt in her fingers.

"No, you do," he replies with a roguish grin.

"I always feel bad when we make love in the kitchen," she murmurs, her grip tightening on his shirt.

"We always clean up after."

"True," she says, smiling wide as he lowers his mouth to hers once more.

 

 

The next morning, they set out with an envoy of carriages, two full of the things donated by the kingdom, and one with all the food. There's another carriage holding a few people from the castle they brought to help, but Eugene had felt a little silly about arriving at his old orphanage riding in a carriage, so he and Rapunzel are on horses alongside the caravan.

When the orphanage begins to appear through the trees, Eugene swallows, his heart tapping out a crazy pattern against his ribs. This is the place where Flynn Rider was born; can he really be Eugene Fitzherbert again here?

_Flynn Rider isn't the one who married the princess_ , the voice in his head reminds him, and the thought makes him smile, remembering Rapunzel saying all those years ago that she preferred Eugene to Flynn.

"So," Rapunzel says, coming up to ride next to him. "Does it look like how you remember it?"

"Yeah, actually. I expected it to seem bigger or smaller, you know? But it looks pretty much the same."

"Are you ready?" she asks, raising her eyebrows when he looks over at her.

"Yeah," he murmurs, smiling again as he leans over to kiss her.

As they get closer to the building, there's a commotion of children trying to see what's going on, and then a middle-aged woman appears.

"What in the world – Eugene!"

"Hey," he says, smiling as he slides off his horse, and then turns to help Rapunzel off of hers.

"The princess!" the woman explains, and flaps her hands at the children crowding around her. "Bow, you lot, it's the princess!"

"No, no!" Rapunzel says, holding up her hands as her cheeks redden. "No, please, that's not necessary."

The woman straightens, looking somewhat flustered, and then flaps her hands again, shooing the children back inside.

"Back to your reading, and make sure your beds are made!"

The kids all head back inside, though it takes several minutes as they all keep turning their heads to look at Eugene and Rapunzel, and the woman looks back to them once all the kids are gone.

"Eugene, it's been years, how are you? And, er, what is all of this?"

Eugene laughs, and then looks abruptly at Rapunzel. "I'm so sorry, this is my wife, Rapunzel. Rapunzel, this is Madame Martha."

"Eugene, you're grown now, you can just call me Martha. And Princess Rapunzel, it's so nice to meet you."

"Don't bow," Rapunzel says, smiling as she holds out her hand. "It's just us."

Martha smiles too, gently grasping Rapunzel's hand.

"And as for all of this, well, Eugene's told me about growing up here, about how things were always sort of... lacking. Not in a bad way," Rapunzel adds quickly. "Just... not enough to go around for so many kids. So I had an idea to help you guys out, and the whole kingdom chipped in, so we have clothes and books and toys and blankets and all sorts of things for the children."

Martha raises a hand to her mouth, tears instantly rising in her eyes, and Rapunzel smiles broadly, reaching for Eugene's hand and squeezing his fingers.

"We also brought lunch for the kids today, if you don't think they'd mind a picnic."

"No, they wouldn't," Martha says, laughing as tears roll down her cheeks. "This is – incredible. Thank you so much, your majesty. And you too, Eugene."

Eugene just shrugs, tipping his head towards Rapunzel. "It was all her."

Martha laughs, and then claps her hands together. "Well, why don't we go inside so you can say hello to the kids, and then we'll come back out here for lunch?"

Rapunzel and Eugene nod, and the three of them start for the door.

 

 

Rapunzel and Eugene spend all day at the orphanage. They leave it to Martha to handle the clothing and bedding, but the boxes of books and toys are laid out for the kids to dive into.

After lunch, Rapunzel spends some time reading to the younger kids (and any of the older ones who want to listen), and Eugene watches her fondly, knowing that she's going to be a wonderful mother, whenever that day comes.

When she finishes, she and Martha disappear inside to talk about what Eugene assumes is official business, and he entertains the kids with the story of how he met Rapunzel, fudging a few details here and there.

Early in the afternoon, they split up the donated seeds, and Rapunzel starts the flower garden, while Eugene puts in the seeds for the vegetable garden.

"Now," Rapunzel says, looking sternly around at the children from her seat on the ground. She's got dirt on her face and dress, and Eugene thinks she looks as far from a princess as she can. "You have lots of books that will tell you everything you need to know about taking care of flowers and vegetables, and when I come back to visit, I expect to see both of these gardens looking very neat and tidy, well watered and well weeded. Promise?"

There's a loud chorus of agreement, and Rapunzel smiles as she gives a satisfied nod.

When it comes time for them to leave, Rapunzel promises they'll come back to visit.

"Read as much as you can while we're gone, and when we come back, I want to know everything you learned, okay?"

The kids all nod, and Rapunzel takes the time to hug each and every one of them before she and Eugene move to climb back onto their horses to head back to Corona.

 

 

Later that night, Rapunzel flops tiredly next to Eugene, lying sideways on the bed, facing Eugene with her head on his stomach. He smiles at her, reaching forward to push her hair behind her ear. She has a bit of sunburn on her nose, cheeks, and chest, and he thinks it's utterly adorable.

"Today was so _fun_ ," she says, smiling back at him.

"It was," he agrees. "It was a little weird being back, but then it was just really great to see how excited the kids were over all the new stuff."

Rapunzel nods. "And I really meant it when I said we'd be back. I want to visit them every so often."

"Yeah, I think it'd be fun. What did you and Martha talk about when you went inside?"

"I just wanted to know how things were going, what she needed, and all of that. I told her I'd talk to my parents about giving them more money, helping with some improvements, stuff like that. Those kids have so much potential, I don't want them to have to do what you did."

"Become a thief and woo the lost princess of Corona?"

"Shut up," Rapunzel giggles, lightly swatting at his chest. "You know what I mean."

He grins and nods. "It was a really good day. And thank you for doing it, Rapunzel, really. One of the things I love so much about you is how much you care about everybody, no matter who they are or where they came from. I mean... look at us, at who I was before I met you, and yeah, okay, we got off to a rocky start, but in the end, my past didn't matter. You just loved _me_ , and nobody had ever really done that before. Loved me for me."

He pauses, and then laughs as he shakes his head. "I'm rambling. I just – today meant a lot. More than I thought it would. So thank you."

Rapunzel smiles and moves up so she can kiss him, resting her hands on his shoulders.

"I love you," she murmurs when the kiss breaks.

He smiles and lifts his hand to comb his fingers through her hair, letting his hand rest against the side of her head as he kisses her again.

"I love you too."


End file.
